Adjustable heel for shoes



F l G. 2

INVENTOR MILFoRD R. HOLDEN ATTORNEY s E.. I W 5 Aug 16, 1956 M. R.HOLDEN ADJUSTABLE HEEL FOR SHOES Filed July l2, 1965 United StatesPatent O Maine Filed July 12, 1965, Ser. No. 470,973 3 Claims. (Cl.36-36) This invention relates to shoe heels, and more particularly to anadjustable shoe heel arrangement for womens shoes whereby the height ofthe heel may be varied to adap-t the shoes for different occasions andpurposes.

Heretofore, it has been suggested to provide adjustable shoe heelarrangements wherein variation in the height of the heel is accomplishedby providing pairs of heel members of different heights, said pairs ofheels being adapted for interchangeable mounting on the heel po-rtionsof the shoes. It has also been suggested to pro-Vide adjustable .shoeheel devices wherein the height of the heel is continuously variablewithin a limited range. While the above-noted prior art arrangements nodoubt function for their intended purposes, they are open to certainobjections which are inherent in their respective designs.

Adjustable shoe heel arrange-ments employing inter* changeable heelsrequire a minimum of two sets of heels, one set of desired heightattached to the heel portions of the shoes, the other set of a differentheight being stored until an occasion arises for its use. Removal andstorage of the spare sets of heels in a remote location creates aproblem, for the reason thateither one or both of the heels of aparticular set may-become lost or misplaced; additionally, themanipulative steps involved in connection with t-he removal of one setand the mounting of another is not only time-consuming, but requiresconsiderable dexterity on the part of the individual confronted with thetask of eifecting the interchange. Arrangements of the type wherein theheight of the heel i-s continuously variable usually incorporatescrew-threaded actuator means supported in ra recess formed in the heelportion of the shoe, said actuator means being operatively connected toan elongated member, whereby upon rotation of the actuator, theelongated member, which carries a heel lift at one end thereof, isreciprocated wit-h respect to the heel portion of the shoe. Devices ofthis type are relatively expensive because of the number of movingparts, and because careful adjustment is required in order to insureuniform projection of the heel lift carrying sections of the movableextensions, so that each heel is of the exact desired height.

After con-siderable research and experimentation, I have found that, asa practical matter, the range of variation in the height of the heels ofa particular pair of womens shoes, is relatively narrow because ofdesign restriction imposed by the designer of s-hoes of a specificcategory. -In this connection, it will be appreciated that -currentpopular styles of dress shoes are provided with so-called higheheelsjthat is to say, shoe heels of the order of 4 in height, and that walkingshoes are usually provi-ded Iwith heels approximately 2" high. Sincedress shoes and walking shoes are of distinct types structurally ands-tylewise, it is not feasible to employ adjustable heel devicesdesigned for general application and use with shoes of both of theabove-noted types.

As a result of experimentation and study in connection with numerousshoe designs involving specically different styles and structuralfeatures, I have found that the most satisfactory height adjustment fora variety of styles of shoes is approximately 1/2 inch. In other words,the adjustment of a shoe heel 2 high would be from 2 to 3,256,l77Patented August 16, 1966 21/2, and a 3 heel could be changed from 3" to31/2, Iwhich provides sufficient change in height to satisfy the desireof the wearer with respect to appearance and comfort.

In accordance with the present invention, the improved adjustable shoeheel comprises, essentially, a cylindrical shaped housing mounted withinthe upper heel portion of a shoe, an elongated, extendable heel memberslidably mounted in the housing, spring means interconnecting thehousing and the heel member, and means cooperatively associated with thehousing and the heel member constructed and arranged, whereby the heelmember may be moved axially of the housing against the tension of thespring means to a desired selected position, at the election of theuser.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved adjustable shoeheel arrangement for womens shoes 'whereby the height of the heels maybe varied.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved adjustableshoe heel arrangement adapted for 'use with a variety of different shoestyles.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide an improved adjustableshoe heel device constructed and arranged whereby a change in the heightof a shoe heel is easily and readily effected.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an improvedadjustable shoe heel device which is strong and rugged in construction,consisting of but few parts not liable to get out of order even afterlong and continued use.

With these and other objects in view, w-hich may be incident to myimprovements, the invention consists in the parts and combinations to behereinafter set forth and claimed, with the understanding that theseveral necessary elements, comprising my invention, may be varied inconstruction, proportions and arrangement, Without departing from thespirit and scope of the appended claims.

In order to make my invention more clearly understood, I have shown inthe accompanying drawings means for carrying the same into practicaleffect, without limiting the improvements in their useful applicationsto the particular construction which, for the purpose of eX planation,have been made the subject of illustration.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a Womans shoe equipped with anadjustable shoe heel device of the presen-t invention;

FIGURE 2. is an enlarged sectional View of the adjustable shoe heeldevice of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is a perspective, expanded view of the adjustable shoe heeldevice of `FIGURE 2, showing the relationship of the components thereof.

`Referring to the drawings, there is shown a womans dress shoe 1 havin-gan upper heel portion 2 formed with a central bore 3 adapted to receivean adjustable heel mechanism 4 therein, said mechanism comprising acylindrical shaped housing 5 formed from metal, and provided with aconcentric passage 6 to receive the upper portion 7 of an elongated,metal heel member 8 adapted for axial movement in said passage. Thehousing 5 is further provided with a pair of similar, o ppositelydisposed bayonet type slots 9, one of the slots being shown vin FIGURE3, adapted to receive the end portions of a pin 10, used to support theelongated heel member in a selected position, as will be described morefully hereinafter.

A coil spring 112, having its end convolutions 13 and 14 terminating inlinear portions 13 and 14', respectively, is adapted for insertion inthe housing `5, the linear porf) D tion 13 seating in an opening 15`formed in the wall of the housing, and linear portion 14 resting in aslot 16 defined by bifurcations 17 formed on the upper end of theelongated heel member 8. The heel member is further formed with apassage 18 for the reception of the pin used to support the heel memberin desired position, and with a peripheral flange 19 adapted to supporta decorative collar member 20 in seated position thereon, whereby tocover the exposed ends of the pin, as will be described hereinafter.

Referring to FIGURE 2, it will be observed that the 'bottom of the heellmember 8 is tapped as at 21 to receive a threaded stud 22 having a heellift 23 secured thereto, whereby a damaged or worn lift may beconveniently replaced. It will be further observed that the head portion24 of the heel member, which is relatively thick, is centrally tapped asat 25 to receive a screw 26 threadable therein, whereby to secure theelongated heel member to the shoe. The head of the screw is counter-sunkin the upper heel portion 2 of the shoe, as shown, FIG- URE 2, andcovered by t-he sole and inner liner of the shoe.

In assembling the above-described components of the Aadjustable heeldevice, and securing the same in operative position within t-he centralbore of the upper heel sect-ion 2 of a shoe, the spring 12 is positionedon the elongated heel member 8, with the linea-r portion 14 of thespring seated in the slot 16 of the heel member (FIGURE 3), the heelmember and associated spring then being moived upwardly of t-he passage6 so as to seat the linear portion 13 in the opening 1S in the wall ofthe housing 5. The heel member is then rotated approximately 180 tobring the passage 11S thereof into alignment with cor-respondin-gopposite portions of the bayonet slots 9, and the pin 10 inserted in oneof the slot portions and pushed through the passage to bring the ends ofthe pin flush with the exterior surface o-f the housing. Thereafter, thecollar 20 is moved downwardly of the housing to seated position on theange or shoulder member 19, thus covering the exposed ends of the pin10. The heel lift 23 may then be attached by turning the stud 22 downinto the threaded opening 21 in the bottom of the heel member.

In use, assuming that the dress shoe illustrated in FIG- U'RE 1 is ofthe type which would normally be equipped with 3 heels, and the weareris satised with the height of the heel, the end portions of the pin 10will be seated in the upper portions 9a (FIGURE 3) of the bayonet slots,and the heel will be in the solid line position of FIGURE 1; if, on theother hand, the wearer nds that the heels should be elevated to providedesired comfort, or for other reasons, the end portions of the pin areseated in the *lower portions 9b of the bayonet slots. Since thevertical distance be'tween the slots is approximately 1/2", the heelheight is increased from 3 to 31/2 when the end portions of the pine areseated in the lower portions 9b of the slots, t-he heel then being inthe dotted line position of FIGURE l. Movement of the heel to a selecteddesired elevation is accomplished by grasping the shoulder member 19 andturning it about 2 in the direction of the arrow, FIGURE 3, to bring theend portions of the pin into alignment with vertical portions 9c of theslots. If the height of the heel is to be increased,

the heel member is pulled downwardly against the tension of the springso as to bring the end portions of the pin into alignment with the lowerslot portions 9b, and while held in ithis position, the heel member ispermitted to rotate in the opposite direction, under the influence ofthe biasing action of the spring, to bring the end portions of the pininto seated position within the lower slot portions. If the height ofthe heel i-s to be decreased, the procedure is reversed, that is to say,after it has been turned to bring the end portions of the pin inregiste-r with the vertical portions 9c, it is permitted to moveupwardly under the tension of the spring, and rotated by the biasingaction of the spring to move the end portions of the pin into seatedposition within the upper slot portions 9a.

While I have shown and desc-ribed the preferred ernbodiment of myinvention, I wish it to be understood that I do not conne myself to theprecise details of construction herein set forth by way of illustration,as it is apparent that many changes and variations may be made therein,by those skilled in the art, without departing from the `spirit of theinvention or exceeding the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An adjustable heel for a womans shoe, comprising a heel body portionadapted to be attached to a shoe, said heel body portion having theconfiguration of a conventional shoe heel corresponding to a particularstyle designation and formed with a central bore, heel adjusting meansseated within said central bore and secured to the heel body portion,the heel adjusting means comprising a cylindrical shaped housinghaivling a concentric opening therein, and a pair of similar, oppositelydisposed bayonet type slots formed in the wal-l thereof, an elongatedheel member positioned within the concentric opening and adapted foraxial movement thereof, said elongated heel member having a transversepassage adapted to `receive a pin member, spring means interconnectingthe heel member and the housing, a pin member seated in said passage andhaving its end portions projecting into t-he bayonet type slots of thehousings, whereby the heel member may be moved axially of the hou-singagainst the tension of the spring to a desired selected position, at theelection of the user.

i2. An adjustable heel for a womens shoe, in accordance with claim 1,wherein a heel lift is detachably secured to the exposed end of theelongated heel.

i3. An adjustable shoe heel in accordance with claim 1, wherein movementof the elongated heel member to a desired selected position with respectto the housing generates a counter-torque on the spring, 'whereby tou-rge the ends of the pin into seated position within the slots formedin the housing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS `1,948,967 2/1934Jassen 36-36 2,912,773 l11/1959 Boldt 36-42 2,934,840 5/1960 Mistarz36-34 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

`FRANK I. COHEN, Examiner.

1. AN ADJUSTABLE HEEL FOR A WOMAN''S SHOE, COMPRISING A HEEL BODYPORTION ADAPTED TO BE ATTACHED TO A SHOE, SAID HEEL BODY PORTION HAVINGTHE CONFIGURATION OF A CONVENTIONAL SHOE HEEL CORRESPONDING TO APARTICULAR STYLE DESIGNATION AND FORMED WITH A CENTRAL BORE, HEELADJUSTING MEANS SEATED WITHIN SAID CENTRAL BORE AND SECURED TO THE HEELBODY PORTION, THE HEEL ADJUSTING MEANS COMPRISING A CYLINDRICAL SHAPEDHOUSING HAVING A CONCENTRIC OPENING THEREIN, AND A PAIR OF SIMILAR,OPPOSITELY DISPOSED BAYONET TYPE SLOTS FORMED IN THE WALL THEREOF, ANELONGATED HEEL MEMBER POSITIONED WITHIN THE CONCENTRIC OPENING ANDADAPTED FOR AXIAL MOVEMENT THEREOF, SAID ELONGATED HEEL MEMBER HAVING ATRANSVERSE PASSAGE ADAPTED TO RECEIVE A PIN MEMBER, SPRING MEANSINTERCONNECTING THE HEEL MEMBER AND THE HOUSING, A PIN MEMBER SEATED INSAID PASSAGE AND HAVING ITS END PORTIONS PROJECTING INTO THE BAYONETTYPE SLOTS OF THE HOUSINGS, WHEREBY THE HEEL MEMBER MAY BE MOUNTEDAXIALLY OF THE HOUSING AGAINST THE TENSION OF THE SPRING TO A DESIREDSELECTED POSITION AT THE ELECTION OF THE USER.